Tod Daniels

I seem to be running into more and more students who've enrolled in a private Thai language school AND received year long, multi-entry, Non-Immigrant Type ED visas in their country BEFORE coming here.

When I was at another private Thai language school yesterday, I met a Canadian guy who’d done this too. (FWIW: Yesterday,I was at 3 different Thai schools and an English language school for Thais too ).

Even though the Canadian guy paid for just 6 months of study at the school he enrolled in; he received a year long visa from a Thai Embassy/Consulate in Canada. Why did he get that? He said it was because that was what he ASKED for when he sent in the paperwork from the school/MOE, his application and the fee for a visa to the Thai Embassy!!

This seems to be a far better way to go IF you can do it. The 'traditional way' is quite labor intensive ;

• enrolling in a school after you're here
  
• traveling to a neighboring countries Thai Embassy or Consulate
  
• receiving a single entry 90 day ED visa
  
• going to Immigrations every 90 days to secure additional extensions of stay

PLUS, you may need to leave so add in the cost of a re-entry permit (which is only good for the current extension of stay), not to mention the 90 day reporting you hafta do too.

Holding a year long, multi entry, Non-Immigrant Type ED visa and border running every 90 days would allow a student to stay here nearly 15 months (if they 'ran-4-the-border' just before their visa's expiration date).

They can come and go from Thailand as much as they please; each time they re-enter they receive a 90 day permission to stay stamp and they don’t hafta report either. Financially, it’s a wash to do border runs or extensions of stay. From Bangkok the price currently runs about 2K baht by the major companies doing visa runs. Extensions of stay are 1900 baht plus travel expenses to and from Thai Immigrations at Changwattana.

Anyway, it seems this could be good viable option for people looking to stay here a year. Especially given the 'tightening up' of the issuing of Non-O visas by various Thai Embassys/Consulates. ..

You don't mention your nationality and that would sorta help people figure out if you’re from any of the countries which DO get a 'real' “visa-on-arrival” or if you just arrived by air and got what's called a "30-day-visa-exempt" stamp.

Concerning your situation, how you actually entered doesn't even matter really, as your objective is to stay here another 90 days, .

As you mentioned, you have a 'cheap ticket' booked to Cambodia already. Why not go to the Thai Embassy in Phnom Penh and get a single entry Tourist Visa? That would be good for 60 days in Thailand and you can extend that stay inside the country at any Thai Immigrations office for an additional 30 days. This would give you the 3 months you're wantin' to be here.

True you'd lose what ever days you had left on the original 30 days you were given when you first entered Thailand, but still you'd get almost 90 days here when you returned from Cambodia.

Good Luck. ..

P/S: You could also just stay here for 30 days and when you've got a few days left go to Phnom Penh to get a single entry tourist visa.

That'd save you some money and still give you 90 days. 30 from when you first came in and 60 on the tourist visa. Plus you could still get a 30 day extension IF you decided to stay longer. So doing it that way you could stay almost FOUR months!

I asked some Thai 'kids' (under 25) who sit and drink in front of my apartment and they told me it's slang for "Are you horny?".

They said the phrase you were asked หิวตับมั้ย is a word play on a Thai song called appropriately enough; กินตับ.

Even though the dancers are all Korean; here’s the best version of the song I could find which conveyed the meaning of chant; ตับ-ตับ-ตับ-ตับ:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVfkP1FQKHc

Anyway,that's the closest I can come to findin' the real meaning for you.

Hope it didn't muddy the water. .. .

As an aside to this thread; I was at a well known private Thai language school last nite ‘observing’ some classes (like I often do ).

A brand new student had just arrived from Germany to start school. In our conversation during break; he told me he'd paid his tuition and had the documents sent to him from the school and the MOE asking that an ED visa be issued. He showed me his passport and he received a year long, multi-entry, Non-Immigrant, Type ED visa too!!

It would seem enrolling in a private Thai language school prior to coming here and securing your ED visa in your home country can sometimes yield better results than tryin' to do it once you're here in the neighboring S/E Asian countries Thai Embassies/Consulates.

Face it the worst you’ll get by applying in your home country is the single entry ED visa which people receive nearly 99.99% of the time in S/E Asia, anyway . You’re certainly out nothing by askin' for a year long multi entry ED visa!

I imagine it'll be a fairly straightforward process seeing as you'll be showing up at Thai Immigrations "VERY" pregnant! I'd ask your doctor if he'll just put in 90 days as the amount of time you're requesting; as that's the max you can get for each extension based on inability to travel due to medical conditions. It’s totally up to the Immigrations officer how long they’ll give you an extension for, but you’re out nothing by tryin for the maximum time allowed.

You DO hafta do this BEFORE you start overstaying. You can't just show up at Immigrations after the fact with the letter and think you're gonna skate without paying for overstaying, as that plan of action doesn't seem to work out all that well.

While at Changwattana the other day accompanying an acquaintance who was sorting out an overstay (for other reasons); The person immediately ahead of us in the queue was trying to get out of paying their overstay fines by providing a letter from the doctor and hospital stating they were unable to travel out of the country due to medical reasons when their visa expired. They argued quite unsuccessfully that was the reason they were on overstay. The Immigrations Officer countered right back with; IF you knew you were going to be unable to travel BEFORE you went into the hospital, why didn't you come here FIRST and get and extension of stay??" The person ended up paying for a 20 day overstay, but they sure didn’t seem all that happy when they left.

A coupla months ago I accompanied an 'acquaintance' who was here getting some EXTREME dental work done at a well known hospital in Bangkok (and a face lift too !). They received a 90 day extension of stay based on their "inability to travel" during their procedures without a hiccup or hitch in the process.

I doubt you'd hafta see the doc at the Immigrations Office; as the officer handling your extension certainly can’t help but notice you're about to 'pop'.

It's true MOST hospitals (especially well known ones which cater to foreigners) have a liaison office which deals with Thai Immigrations for situations like this on a daily basis. Some hospitals do such a high volume of this type of extension that Thai Immigrations sends an officer to the hospital to deal with it!

Good luck,

(Sorry for the long post, hope it helped some. ..)

There is certainly no shortage of English language programs taught by foreign nationals in the greater Bangkok area. Finding one which has a teaching staff of Thai nationals isn't that hard either. The problem is weeding out the ones which provide quality English language learning from the ones that don't and that can be quite hit-or-miss.

A very good school that immediately comes to mind is one I know which has teachers who are Thai nationals who speak fluent English (and Thai of course ), AND which also has native English speaking foreigners who speak fluent Thai too! (I mean how cool is that?) That way they can explain the “why” about the English language IN Thai so a student understands better how the English language goes together and how it differs from Thai.

The school I’m thinking of is called the “Chris English School”.

It’s founded by a half Thai half British guy named Christopher Wright. His catch phrase for the school is “Learn English the Wright way” <- you gotta admit, that IS pretty catchy huh?

He’s actually known to almost every Thai as “Chris Delivery”. He even has a television show (by the same name) on every Friday nite which teaches English to Thais using skits with famous Thai actors and singers.

He’s one of the most enthusiastic energetic and outgoing private language school owners I’ve ever met. He sincerely wants Thai people to learn English and has really put a lot of time into coming up with ways that English will ‘click and stick’ for Thais learning it

His school is located in the (newly rebuilt) Central World Plaza, so it’s easy to get there from the Sky Train. They offer a WIDE variety of English programs depending on the level of English and the objectives a student has.

I know a few Thais who’ve attended it. They say it’s great, really interactive and really interesting and their English skills went up markedly!

Face it learning a foreign language is hard enough on a person, (I can attest to that in my endeavor to learn the Thai language ). Any place which makes the learning interesting and where the language actually sinks in is a plus!

Here’s their website;

Chris English School

Good Luck. ..

Oh BTW: I’m NOT affiliated with ANY private Thai or English language school in Thailand. .. I just offer out what I’ve found thru poking around at the various schools.

“sbk” you are right.

I stand corrected and I totally understand how my post may not have had the relevance to someone in Chiang Mai when my experience is only from their Bangkok branch.

SOOOO, being the enquiring mind that I am (read, a nosy person ); I called the PRO Language branch in Chiang Mai and spoke to the director of the school just now. They said they use the exact same course materials and teaching methodology that they use at their main school in Bangkok.

As I happen to have a few ‘borrowed’ copies of several levels of PRO Language’s textbooks; I asked him the titles specifically and he said they were the same titles.

I hope it sheds a little more light on what they offer up there and lends at least some credence to my O/P.

From now on I promise to do my 'homework', before I post about schools I haven't personally visited. Thanx

Great news for the student!

I’ve probably met 10 or 15 students who’ve enrolled in various private Thai Language schools here in Bangkok while they were still in the US, and Canada..

The schools emailed / faxed the support documentation from both the school and MOE to the students so they could secure their visa prior to comin’ here.

Each of those students applied for and received a year long multi-entry Non-Immigrant Type ED visas. If I remember correctly, I even saw one issued from Hull for a UK guy (but it was over a year ago, so I’m not quite sure).

I think the consulates and/or embassy’s in UK, EU, the US or Canada have a LOT more latitude on what they’re gonna issue a student as far as a non-ED visa.

S/E Asia is pretty tight and most students ONLY get a single entry for attending a private Thai language school when they apply in neighboring countries.

Converting the Danish Krone into Thai baht shows that visa cost the student about 5300 baht or about $175 USD.

That’s FAR cheaper than getting a single entry ED in a neighboring country for 2000baht and then doing extensions of stay at 1900 baht a pop for the rest of the year. Plus the student has unlimited re-entries too!

Again, really great news!

Kudos to both the school and the student for going that route!

We interrupt your regularly scheduled programming to bring you this BREAKING NEWS BULLETIN:

I just walked past the White Lioness on the way back to my apartment this morning.

The Thai workers there told me TODAY is the ‘grand opening!!

Might be worth a swing by to check it out, then again, depending on your personal penchants, it might not.

FWIW: they really DID sink a HUGE “pile ‘o baht” into the build out, renovations. It sure is a looker of a club, errr, go-go bar, errr, what ever it actually is.

Let’s just leave it at IT LOOKS REALLY NICE!!.

FWIW: I’d also like to recommend to anyone interested in learning the Thai language to head over to Language Express and at least check ‘em out.

Heck why not take a free lesson or three. I mean free means FREE, right?

You’re only investing your time and who knows you might learn some Thai too.

Really, IMHO; it’s a good school, with good materials, at an easy to get to location in Bangkok. You can't miss it looking at the south side of Sukhumvit Road from the Ploen Chit BTS station, as Language Express takes up the ENTIRE frontage on the ground floor of Mahatun Plaza.

As a previous poster mentioned; there’s a coffee shop inside the school with plenty of (foreigner sized) tables ‘n chairs in the student lounge area to kick back and chat with other Thai language learners before and after class.

Really, seeing as they’re doing the free offer again, I might even see if I can take ‘em up on it (again) I really enjoyed it the first time around .

I'd say; "Call NOW !! Operators are standing by to take your calls !!", but in reality the people that answer the phone sit; so that's not an appropriate catch phrase, lol.

You know I hadn't really had the chance to see this in action until the other nite on someone's laptop.

While it ain't the slickest set of programs out there; it wasn't designed to be a one click open everything up type of dealy. I think this was by choice to prevent someone from just ripping it and offering it on a free download site.

Once you get everything you need open for your lesson; I hafta say it runs pretty darned good. The developer invested a LOT of time into it, and from reports on T/V is pretty good about getting back to people and resolving problems/complaints.

Unfortunately, the biggest problem with ANY 'self-study' material usually lies with the student's motivation ; very rarely is it directly related to the material being used .

Now is it worth what they sell it for? I dunno as I worked thru a coupla lessons the other nite.

The thing that threw me early on was the near complete absence of personal pronoun usage when speaking in the first person! It is understood by every Thai present that the speaker is making the statement them self so no pronoun is used as its unstated in spoken Thai. I've found the use of nicknames when speaking in the first person far more common than using personal pronouns, but I've also heard ตัวเอง and even just เอง too.

Thankfully, going on six years here and I've NEVER EVER had a Thai point their finger at me (and would certainly ask 'em in Thai why they would do such a rude thing), if they did.

Now of course it goes without saying, MANY times I have heard Thai people use ultra colloquial personal pronouns ฉัน (even spoken by male speakers), เธอ, กู, มึง, and even the occasional มัน too. However this is usually observed among a very tight-knit social circle of close friends and NOT used if "outsiders" are present.

Nor have I heard, when sitting with my Thai close friends, people referring to themselves or others as "this" and "that". I'm not saying it doesn't happen, only that I've NEVER heard it.

If you encounter people you're not familiar with speaking to you in this manner; well, you're clearly runnin with different herd 'o Thais than I typically encounter.

As has been mentioned; PRO Language has a branch in Chiang Mai. I haven't been to that specific location but I HAVE been to the one in Bangkok.

They have a good program with MANY levels and choices depending on what you're wanting; be it strictly conversational Thai or speaking, learning to read and write too.

A coupla weeks ago I just sat about 4 hours of class time in various levels at their TImes Square location here in Bangkok. They teach good high frequency vocab, "phrozen-phrasez" (things you say all the time), and word substitution drills to learn sentence constructs.

If Chiang Mai is run anything like their Bangkok branch, I think you'd be fine there.

Here's their website;

PRO Language

Payap University is a "real university" and as such their course can't really be compared to the private Thai language sector. That's like comparing apples to oranges. I'm not saying the private Thai language sector isn't good because there are certainly good schools out there, only that they ain't "real universities" and usually cater to a different demographic.

Although I've never attended Payap, reading reports from people who have, it looks like a high quality very intensive course.

Here's their website too;

Payap University Intensive Thai Program

While OFF-TOPIC:

I thought I'd at least back up my claim as far as the talent (or lack thereof) by showcasing บลูเบอร์รี่ อาร์ สยาม and their "hit song" ชิมิ ชิมิ;

Here it is for your viewing pleasure;

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dsYtCzuPFOg

They would also appear to fall somewhere into the same ส.ต.ง. demographic. .. I think the 'out-takes' at the end of the video are the best part of the whole thing!!

I've sent more people than I even remember to both the service asked about by the O/P

Claudio - Thai Visa Service

and to this one too;

Phillip - Quick Thai Visa Run

I've never had someone call me back and tell me either service didn't meet their expectations. Both are run very professionally.

I've also never heard of their mini-vans breaking down halfway to the border and waiting in the middle of nowhere Thailand for another one to 'rescue' you, like some companies.

Its a lower class colloquialism for isn't it... Or in London Speak "innit".......

I really don't think you could shoe-horn ใช่ป่ะ into a "lower class colloquialism" by any wild stretch of the imagination. ..

By its very definition "colloquial" means: "used in or characteristic of familiar and informal conversation". This would seem to negate ANY distinction based simply on class. I believe it is much more a "contextual" thing based on the degree of familiarity the party's engaged in conversation have with one another.

I've met many hi-so Thai Uni-gurls who were all too full of themselves as far as where they stood "class wise". They routinely use ชิล ๆ, ใช่ป่ะ and ชิมิ in speaking with their friends.

FWIW:

ชิล ๆ is used a LOT by mindless Thai Dara’s in television interviews here to show they can “sa-peak inter”. These girls usually fall into the ส.ต.ง. category. That’s สวยแต่โง่ = beautiful but stupid!

ชิมิ is the morphing of ใช่ไหม made insanely popular by a group of less than marginally talented thai-gurls called; บลูเบอร์รี่ อาร์ สยาม (Blueberry Are Siam") .

I'd hafta say [/u]NOPE[/u] it’s definitely NOT a class thing or an educational thing, BUT a term used in a particular circle of acquaintances with which the speakers are on very familiar terms.

And thus ends my dissertation . I will vacate the soapbox now for the next respondent!

Glad you got it sorted! Sorry that your post called out the "foreign bashing brigade", or the crazy faction which adheres to the "bribe you way thru it" method to get things done.

Sheesh, that's sad really.

Unless you know where you're going a taxi will invariably take you to the WRONG building, mostly because Thai nationals never have a cause to go to Thai Immigrations as that's ONLY for foreigners . Thais use the other building which has stuff for Thais in it.

Still good it worked out!

Oh and I welcome as the newest member of the illustrious "check your stamp before you walk away" association. ..

WOW! Between this thread AND the one also running on the Thai Language sub-forum here;

Study via Skype Thread (T/V Thai Language Sub-forum)

I guess there's more than a little interest in studying the Thai language via the Internet!

That was a GREAT review "kunjet"!

I think it outlines the plusses and minuses of Chula's program quite well. It also provided insight as how it worked out for you given the goals you set for yourself learning the Thai language. Really good stuff man! :jap:

Sadly, I feel all too few, if any, retired foreigners here would invest either the time or the money to learn Thai to that degree. For the VERY few who do; sincerely, I'll doff my cap and tug my forelock as you pass by. (Well, I'd tug my forelock if I wasn't bald already , but I will doff my cap!)

I recently found out that DPU; "Dhurakij Pundit University" (มหาวิทยาลัยธุรกิจบัณฑิตย์) offers a Thai program for foreigners as well. Unfortunately I didn't make it out to Srinakharinwirot to revisit them yet, but hopefully be able to go there and to Ramkhamhaeng later this week too.

Again, thanx for the info "kunjet".

Sheesh, even the Thais know they do this! If they didn't they wouldn't have the phrase "พูดอ้อม ๆ" (phuut^F aawm^F aawm^F); as in "speaking in an indirect or roundabout manner".

When I first started learning Thai I remarked to another foreigner in the class that I was apprehensive learning the language of a country where the word "no" translates word-4-word into; "not yes".

It didn't instill confidence in me about their ability to give direct answers then and going on 6 years here it still doesn’t.

They can and often DO give some of the most oblique, circuitous and totally bizarre answers to the simplest questions, often of the yes or no variety.

I think the cultural phenomena of 'not wanting to offend someone' or make them 'lose face' by saying "no" outright, makes them a little more creative in the ways they come up with to say it.

My personal experience goes against the poster known as “Moonrakers” insofar as ANY Thai will give oblique answers to most direct questions unless they are of the mundane variety like, ‘Where’s the bathroom?’, 'Do you need some money?' etc.

Here is my most memorable occurrence of this behavior;

I was lost whilst driving up country, saw an old Thai man walking on the side of the road, so pulled over and walked up to him. After exchanging greetings and pleasantries in Thai, I asked if this road went to ‘where ever it was I was going’, and he said yes just stay on it. He didn't motion one way or the other, just said, keep on this road.

Another 20 kilometers down the road; I saw a sign saying that where I wanted to go was the opposite direction I was traveling!!

Now perhaps the old man didn’t want me to “lose face” by saying, “You’re going the wrong way, you stupid foreigner!”, or perhaps he didn’t wanna “lose face” by telling me he didn’t know the answer himself.

I questioned a Thai at my destination about it. He told me, “You know the old man was right. You asked only if the road you were on went here, you didn’t ask which way to go on it to get here”…

It still sticks in my head, lol….

I thought of the “married concurrent extension method” too. It seems from reading the O/P's post, at this time, they aren't married.

She could come in on a Tourist Visa she got from her country's Thai Embassy before she gets here. Maybe they’ll issue a double or triple entry one and that would buy her more time.

Perhaps she could get a multi-entry year long ED visa; if she signed up and paid for a year of Thai language study at a school which would provide her with documentation prior to her coming here.

Some of the Thai Embassy's in the EU will issue visas like that if you ask them to. True she'd hafta border run to receive another 90 days or extend her visa in-country every 90 days at Thai Immigrations, but it'd give her time to sort out what's what.

Given the circumstances she's outlined there really aren't any visa options which are a "perfect fit".

At least NONE I can think up. Sorry about that. ...

Hmm, sorry my version of the form didn't work for you, I print it all the time from my p/c. Strange how Word makes it two pages, huh?.. They've accepted it like that from me a LOT of times. ..

BTW: I just looked at the 'real' T.M8 form from Immigrations which I had in my filing cabinet of visa stuff and it is just one single page.

Sorry about that. ..

The form you want is called a T.M8 Re-Entry permit.

Here's the form.

TM-8 Re-Entry Permit.doc

Print it on BOTH sides of a single piece of A4 size paper, not as two sheets (or they won't accept it).

Sorry, saw someone beat me to it. ..

There seems to be more than a little disparity in how the various Thai Immigrations offices scattered hither and yon thru-out this country interpret exactly when a document becomes "stale", "expired" or "out of date".

Changwattana in Bangkok seems to want them to be as 'fresh' as possible, but I’ve personally observed them accept ones which were 90 days old before without question. I did also observe one person being sent by Immigrations to acquire another "fresh" document as his was from the previous year.

It's sort of a crap shoot really. I know the verification document people get from the US Embassy doesn't even have an expiration date on it at all. It's totally a Thai interpretation of when it 'goes off'. ..

I'd have your significant Thai other call the local Immigrations Office and ask an official what their personal 'take' is on it.

In theory you should be FINE if the document is under 90 days old, but that’s just my observations out at Changwattana. Although I couldn’t find the post, I believe there were reports on the T/V forum of some offices wanting documents like this to be “aged” not more than 30 days.

There's just too much variance office by office to really pin down the exact date a document becomes 'stale' in Thai eyes.

This one threw me for a loop too early on as it was something I've heard Thai women say over and OVER when I used to eavesdrop on Thais.

As has been pointed out in previous posts, it is in fact just the colloquial shortening of ใช่หรือเปล่า into ใช่ป่ะ. Sometimes even the word ใช่ isn't enunciated clearly and that's why it sounds like it does to your ears.

Here is what Thai-Language-dot-com has for the definition of ป่ะ; "informal abbreviation of the interrogatory หรือเปล่า spoken by a female".

Conversely I've NEVER EVER heard it uttered by a Thai guy. Well, come to think of it, actually I have, but ONLY when they were "playin' for the other team".

It is used a LOT on chat speak, and ภาษาพูด with your close friends too..